WORCESTER — Jim and Lindsey Kersten's wedding Sunday was in many ways like every other wedding.

There was bad weather threatening to move the ceremony, held on the back steps of City Hall, indoors; the long lines at the bar; the funny and sweet best man and maid of honor speeches; and the calling up of tables to get to the buffet.

Eyes closed, the Kersten wedding could have been at any function hall or country club. But guests at Sunday's reception will always be able to say they went to a wedding once at the Worcester Public Library.

The third floor of the Salem Square landmark performed admirably in its debut as a wedding reception venue, and library officials — including Mr. Kersten himself — hope it's a sign of things to come in offering the building for alternative uses.

"Worcester has given so much to Lindsey and I, we wanted to make sure our life together started in the cultural center of the city," Mr. Kersten said as he sat near a row of bookshelves.

Mr. Kersten, vice president of the Worcester Public Library board of directors, proposed the idea to the board, but recused himself from discussions about it during the months-long process of getting approval to hold it there.

"We're grateful to have the opportunity to do this, but we hope it can help the library grow this in the future," Mr. Kersten said.

The couple incorporated library-themed touches where they could. The guest book was an old dictionary; guests were asked to find a word they felt described the newlyweds and write their names next to it. Place settings resembled book pages, and the centerpiece vases were wrapped in them. Lights hung from columns around the rotunda, which served as the dance floor overlooking Franklin Street.

Mrs. Kersten, a gymnastics instructor, said it was a long process to get the wedding they wanted, but said she was happy with how it turned out. They originally wanted to have their wedding in Portsmouth, N.H., where they often traveled, but when that didn't work out, Mr. Kersten, who works for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, suggested they try to have it at the library.

"We didn't want to get married in a regular venue," Mrs. Kersten said.

Susan Gately, president of the library's board of directors, said she's glad the Kertstens chose to have their wedding at the library. Their request set in motion a process that led to changes in library policy that will allow the library to "take advantage of enterprise opportunities," she said.

The Kerstens paid a fee to rent the building, and that money, for now, will go to the library's general fund. The decision to allow the Kersten wedding reception is part of a new push to rethink the library's role in the community, she said.